
NOTES ON THE HISTORY 



OF 



PENNSYLVANIA 




.^^ 



NOTES ON THE HISTORY 



OF 



PENNSYLVANIA 



By ROBERT J. McLAUGHLIN, A. M, 

John Welsh School, Philadelphia 



PHILADELPHIA 

Waither Print, Third Street and Girard Avenue 

1913 



Copyright, 1913 

By Robert J. McLaughlin 

Published, August, 1913 



//O 



©CI.A350819 



NOTES ON THE HISTORY 

OF 

PENNSYLVANIA 



I. Early Explorers and Settlers. 

The earliest European settlers of Pennsylvania were the 
Swedes and the Dutch. Henry Hudson, in his daring voy- 
age in the ''Half Moon," in 1609, entered the Delaware 
Bay, thus establishing the Dutch claim to this region. The 
river and the bay took their name from Lord Delaware, a 
governor of Virginia who entered the bay the next year. 
In 1616, Captain Hendrickson, a Dutch navigator, explored 
the Delaware River as far as the mouth of the Schuylkill. 
His vessel, the "Onrust" or "Restless," had been built on 
the Hudson, taking the place of his original ship from 
Holland. The Dutch in 1623, under Captain Mey, settled 
on the Jersey shore of the Delaware, nearly opposite where 
Philadelphia now stands. This Captain Mey is now best 
remembered by the cape that bears his name. From this 
settlement the Dutch went into Pennsylvania, establishing 
a valuable trade in beaver-skins. 

The early rivals of the Dutch Avere the Swedes. Peter 
Minuit, having resigned as governor of New Netherland, 
had given his services to the Swedes. He and his Swedish 
colonists reached America in 1638, erecting Fort Christina 
where Wilmington now stands. New Sweden spread rap- 



idly into Pennsylvania. Johan Printz, the third governor, 
arriving in 1642, selected Tinicum Island, twelve miles 
below Philadelphia, as his headquarters, calling the settle- 
ment New Gottenberg. In 1643, the Swedes also founded 
a small town at Upland, now called Chester, where their 
first courts met, and where the first highway was built. 
The Swedes w^ere energetic colonists, raising wheat, rye, 
and tobacco, and trading in furs. Their prosperity aroused 
the Dutch ; and under Peter Stuyvesant, the Dutch gov- 
ernor of New Netherland, they determined to restore the 
region to Holland. His ships, with six hundred men, 
arrived in 1655, and New Sweden surrendered without re- 
sistance to the Dutch rule. 

Note. — 01(1 Swedes' Church, or the Gloria Dei, near Front and 
Christian Streets^ Philadelphia, is a monument to the original Swedish 
church here, built in 1669. 

2. The English Settlement of Pennsylvania. 

(a) The English, alarmed at the success of the Dutch, 
determined to end their rule in America. England based 
her claim to the region on the discoveries of the Cabots 
in 1497, and she considered the Dutch as intruders. Soon 
after Charles II. became king, he granted the region from 
the Delaware to the Connecticut to his brother, James, the 
Duke of York. In 1664, an English fleet arrived at New 
Amsterdam, the chief Dutch settlement, and New Nether- 
land passed without resistance into English hands, the 
larger part becoming New York. Then the English sent 
two ships to the Delaware, and Swedes and Dutch sub- 
mitted to English rule. 

(b) The idea of founding a colony in America for per- 
secuted Quakers originated with George Fox, a poor shoe- 



maker preacher. In 1648, he founded the sect whose fol- 
lowers called themselves Friends, the name, Quakers, being 
given in derision by foes. These people were opposed to 
fighting, either by individuals or by armies ; they objected 
to taking oaths, and to all pomp and show ; they would not 
take off their hats before any man, believing in the equality 
of all. They refused to worship with the Church of Eng- 
land, and their meetings were often dispersed by soldiers; 
an act of Parliament called them a ''mischievous and dan- 
gerous people." Hundreds of them died in prison rather 
than give up their beliefs. It was this English persecution 
which drove them to America. Those who went to New 
England w^ere either banished or hanged by the Puritans, 
and the Quakers found their first refuge in New Jersey. 
It was some of these settlers who told William Penn of the 
beautiful "Indian country on the west side of the Dela- 
ware," the land that was to be Pennsylvania. 

(c) William Penn was the son of Admiral Penn, a per- 
sonal friend of King Charles II. While the young Penn 
was studying at the University of Oxford, he adopted 
Quaker views; and for his resistance to the laws of the 
university he was expelled. After a tour in France and 
Italy, he returned to England, with his ideas of Quakerism 
almost forgotten. His father sent him to Ireland, and here 
he again adopted the Quaker ideas, much to his father's 
anger. Soon after his return to England, he wrote in 
defence of Quakerism, and was imprisoned for some 
months. On his father's death, Penn became a rich man, 
yet he still continued his connection with the persecuted 
Quakers. He had inherited a claim against the English 
government for £16,000. In 1680, Penn asked the king 
to give him a tract of land in America in settlement of this 



debt, and the king was glad to do so, Penn thus becoming 
the proprietor of the new province. He first suggested 
New "Wales as the name, and later Sylvania, from the Latin 
word ''sylva," meaning a forest. To this the king pre- 
fixed "Penn," giving the name Pennsylvania. 

Note. — Penn had almost absolute control over the land so granted 
to him. For it he was to pay the king t"wo beaver-skins a year and 
one-fifth of all the gold and silver found there. 

(d) Penn sent his cousin, Colonel AVilliam Markham, to 
take possession and act as deputy-governor. He himself 
came over in 1682 on the ship ''Welcome," and landed at 
New Castle, Delaware. Reaching Upland two days later, 
he changed the name to Chester. Here he called a pro- 
visional Legislature and spent some time in framing laws. 
He visited the site of his future city of Philadelphia be- 
tween the Delaware and the Schuylkill River, purchasing 
the land from three Swedish brothers. In the early 
months of 1683, the streets of the new town were laid out. 
The nine streets that ran east and w^est were named for 
forest trees, such as Spruce, Pine, Chestnut, Walnut, Sas- 
safras (now Race Street), etc. Mulberry Street became 
Arch Street on account of its arched bridge at Front Street. 
High Street, on account of its markets, became known as 
Market Street. The streets running north and south were 
named numerically, as Second Street, Third Street, etc. 
The first winter, 1682-1683, saw few houses, and the peo- 
ple lived mainly in caves along the river front. From the 
first the city grew rapidly, and before long it became the 
great city of the colonies. 

Penn aimed to make the Indians his friends. In' June, 
1683, he made his famous treaty with them under a large 
elm-tree on the shore of the Delaware. Penn and his at- 



tendants were unarmed. After receiving some presents, 
the Indians gave the wampum belt and pledged eternal 
peace. 

Note 1. — This elm-tree became very famous. A British general 
stationed a guard to protect it, when the English occupied Philadel- 
phia, in 1777. It was destroyed by a storm in 1810, but its site is 
marked by a monument, now surrounded by a little park. 

Note 2. — Penn, after the treaty under the Shackamaxon elm, pur- 
chased land at various times from the Indians. The most famous of 
these was the '^ Walking Purchase," by which he was to receive a 
tract of land extending as far from the Delaware Kiver as a man 
could w^alk in three days. Penn, accompanied by a few friends and a 
small company of Indians, walked about thirty miles in a day and a 
half. The remaining day and a half were walked out in 1733, by 
orders of Thomas Penn. Three fast walkers were obtained^ the prizes 
offered for speed being five hundred acres for each. A path was 
marked to guide them, and food was placed along the way at inter- 
vals. By noon of the second day, the fastest walker, a hunter named 
Marshall, had walked over sixty miles. The indignant Indians refused 
to give up the land until Thomas Penn, by valuable presents, secured 
the help of the Iroquois chiefs. Ordered by them to give up the land, 
the unfortunate Delawares had to submit. 

Note 3. — In the summer of 1683, William Penn built a brick house 
which he called the Letitia House, naming it after his daughter. 
This house was located at Second and Market Streets, and there he 
lived until he left for England in 1684. It now stands in Fairmount 
Park. 

Penn's country house, at Pennsbury, near Bristol, was a palatial 
residence, surrounded by fine grounds. This house cost a great sum, 
but Penn lived in it only from 1699 to 1701. The roads were so bad 
that Penn generally traveled to the city by boat when he was at 
Pennsbury. 

(e) In the government of the colony Penn showed great 
liberality. He drew up a constitution, or "Frame of Gov- 
ernment" in England, and it was published in 1682. The 
government was vested in a governor, appointed by the 
proprietor, and in the freemen of the Province, who were 
to elect a Provincial Council and a General Assembly. 
Penn called the first meeting of the General Assembly in 
Chester in December, 1682. As no Council had been 
chosen, the Assembly met alone and adopted a number of 



8 

laws which were embodied in the ''great law or body of 
laws of the Province of Pennsylvania, "and this ''Great 
Law" is still to a great extent part of the law of the 
State. • It allowed complete freedom of worship; it gave 
the right of voting to property-owners and tax-payers; it 
limited the death penalty to the two crimes of murder 
and treason, and this at a time when in England two hun- 
dred offenses were punishable by death. 

Penn left for England in 1684. In 1701, he abandoned 
the old "Frame of Government" and gave the people a 
new constitution, called the "Charter of Privileges." 
This gave greater powers to the General Assembly, which 
was still to be elected by the people. It made the Pro- 
vincial Council a body to be appointed by the proprietor, 
its duty being to advise the governor and to act as a court 
of appeal. By this "Charter of Privileges," the "three 
lower counties," or Delaware, had a separate Assembly 
granted them. This "Charter" continued in effect till the 
Revolution. 

Note J. — In 170], Penn gave Philadelphia the charter by which it 
became a city, Edward Shippen being its first mayor. 

Note 2. — All the Quakers did not settle in Philadelphia. Many on 
landing settled on farms and in various small settlements in south- 
eastern Pennsylvania. A considerable number were in comfortable 
circumstances, and they met with no such hardships as the Pilgrims 
endured. 

Note 3. — Penn's colony brought him no riches. He returned to 
England in 1684, remaining there for fifteen years. In this period 
he had many difficulties to meet as the friend of the exiled James II. 
In 1699 he returned to Pennsylvania, bringing with him his second 
wife, Hannah Callowhill. He became again the governor of the colony, 
continuing so until he left for England in 1701, to defend his rights 
as proprietor of Pennsylvania. His affairs in England were in a very 
bad condition. Lawsuits, the expenses caused by one of his sons, and 
the claims of his agent. Ford, had involved him deeply in debt. At 
Ford 's death, his heirs brought their claim into court, and Penn went 
to the debtors ' prison rather than submit to their demands. He stayed 



9 

there about nine months. When the Ford heirs reduced their claim 
to about one-half, Penn's friends paid the money, and set him free. 
He died of paralysis in 1718. 

j^ote 4. — Although most of the English settlers in Pennsylvania 
were Quakers, there were many in Philadelphia who belonged to the 
Church of England. They built the original of the present Christ 
Church in 1695, on Second Street, above Market. The old church was 
replaced by a new one, whose corner-stone was laid in 1727, and this 
building is one of the city 's historic relics. The tower with the steeple 
Avas completed in 1754, at a cost of over £3,000, and in this steeple 
hangs the famous chime of bells that cost £560. The steeple once 
held a crown; but in 1787, a bishop's miter with thirteen stars was 
put there. Washington worshipped here, as did Benjamin Franklin, 
Robert Morris, John Adams, and many other great men of the Rev- 
olution. A rector of Christ Church, Rev. Jacob Duche, was chaplain 
of the First Continental Congress in 1774. When the British cap- 
tured Philadelphia in 1777, Duche abandoned the American cause and 
urged Washington to do likewise. He fled to England, but later re- 
turned to Philadelphia. 

In Christ Church cemetery, at Fifth and Arch, lie buried the re- 
mains of Philadelphia's greatest citizen, Benjamin Franklin. 

3. Other Nationalities in Pennsylvania. 

(a) The Welsh were among the early settlers. Most of 
them were Friends; they, too, had been persecuted by 
England, and they came to Pennsylvania to secure free- 
dom. A few remained in Philadelphia, but most of them 
settled in the Welsh Barony, later called the Welsh Tract, 
a country section extending back from the Schuylkill. 
Others went still further west, settling in Lancaster 
County. Such names as Bryn Mawr (meaning "the great 
hill"), Merion, Montgomery, Haverford, and Welsh 
Mountains show the extent of their settlements. At first 
they were unable to understand the English language; 
they soon ceased to be separate, however, and merged into 
the colony as one of its valued elements. 

(b) The Scotch-Irish began to come to Pennsylvania 
shortly after the year 1700. They came in great numbers, 
forming more than half of the population of colonial 



10 

Pennsylvania. These settlers were the descendants of the 
Scotch who had occupied the northern part of Ireland in 
the seventeenth century. Pennsylvania attracted them be- 
cause of its fertile soil and its religious freedom. They 
did not agree well with the German settlers in the eastern 
part of the State, and most of them went westward. The 
counties of Cumberland, Adams, and Franklin were largely 
settled by them. In 1768, when the land beyond the 
Allegheny Mountains was opened to settlers, many of them 
seized the opportunity, and invaded the western wilder- 
ness. The Scotch-Irish were energetic and brave, and well 
adapted to conquer the difficulties of frontier life. They 
fought and conquered the Indians, turned the forest into 
farms and towns, and were an important element in the 
development of the State. 

(c) The Germans were the first, after the Friends, to 
emigrate to Pennsylvania. Penn and Fox had visited 
Holland and Germany, and their ideas were welcomed by 
many. Among these were the Mennonites, a people like 
the Quakers in their opposition to war, and in their use 
of plain, simple dress and speech. These Mennonites, 
persecuted in the regions along the Ehine, were glad to 
find peace in Pennsylvania. In 1683, Francis Daniel Pas- 
torius, a learned German, master of seven languages, es- 
tablished the German settlement of Germantown, now a 
suburb of Philadelphia. The original settlement was made 
by a little company of forty-one Mennonites. The people 
were extremely poor, but their industry soon brought 
prosperity. They were skilled weavers of linen, and their 
goods found a ready market. They practiced other in- 
dustries, such as lacemaking, printing, etc. Among their 
industrial establishments was the first paper-mill in 



11 

America, built in 1690 on a branch of Wissahickon Creek, 
near Philadelphia, by "William Rittinghuysen, a Mennon- 
ite minister from Holland. 

After 1700, the English government circulated in Ger- 
many descriptions of the wealth and beauty of America in 
order to induce German immigation. Its efforts were suc- 
cessful, and great numbers came to Pennsylvania. By 
1750, the Germans here numbered about 90,000, forming 
one-third of the entire population. They settled the val- 
leys of the Lehigh, the Schuylkill, and the Susquehanna, 
founding the towns of Bethlehem, Easton, Allentown, 
Reading, Lebanon, and Lancaster. These people were ex- 
cellent farmers, and their steady thrift and persistent in- 
dustry contributed largely to make the colony of Penn> 
sylvania successful. They did their duty in the Revo- 
lution also, helping with their Scotch-Irish neighbors in 
winning independence for the nation. 

Note 1. — Pastorius was one of four Germans to protest against 
slavery in 1688. The Friends adopted his idea and became the anti- 
slavery leaders. 

Note 2. — The German sects who came to Pennsylvania to secure re- 
ligious freedom, such as the Mennonites, the Tunkers, and the Mora- 
vians, were all opposed to display and to war. The Moravians, the 
followers of Count Zinzendorf, settled Bethlehem in 1741. They lived 
in communities, and ' ' carried on about thirty trades for the benefit 
of the church. ' ' Many worked as missionaries among the Indians. 

Note 3. — The descendants of the German settlers in the agricultural 
district of eastern Pennsylvania, ''commonly spoken of as the 'Penn- 
sylvania Dutch,' are numerous to-day, and the German language of 
two centuries ago is still spoken, though with an odd mixture of Eng- 
lish words." 

4. Settlement of the Largest Towns and Cities of 
Pennsylvania. 

While Philadelphia was the chief centre of colonial 
trade, many other towns developed from the continued 



12 

immigration into the colony. In most cases, it was the 
mineral wealth of the State that led to their development. 
Pittsburgh, originally Fort Duquesne, was taken by the 
English in 1758, and rebuilt as Fort Pitt. The city began 
in 1760, and the next year it had about one hundred houses. 
Its growth was slow until the opening of the Northwest 
Territory, when Pittsburgh became a centre of trade for 
the new settlements. The abundance of coal and iron in 
its neighborhood made it a great manufacturing city, during 
the nineteenth century. 

Bethlehem, one of the oldest of the German settlements, 
was settled by Moravians in 1741. Its situation on the 
main line of travel between Boston and Philadelphia, made 
it an important colonial city. The adjoining South Beth- 
lehem has now extensive iron and steel works. Other 
German settlements were Reading, the fourth largest city 
of the State, founded in 1748; Wilkes-Barre, a great 
anthracite coal centre, founded in 1783; Allentown, 
founded in 1751, and developed by its iron industries; 
Lancaster, founded in 1730 in a fertile region now pro- 
ducing much grain and tobacco; Lebanon, founded in 
1750 ; and Easton, founded in 1738. 

Scranton, third in size of the cities of the State, was 
founded in 1840, taking its name from the Scrantons, who 
manufactured iron there. The coal from the surrounding 
region and the steel and iron manufactures have developed 
this city. 

Erie was laid out in 1795, its development being due 
to commerce on the Great Lakes and with Pittsburgh. 

In the Susquehanna Valley, the two largest cities are 
Harrisburg and York. Harrisburg, the capital of the 
State, was founded by John Harris, and became a city in 



13 

1785. York was settled in 1741 ; it lies in a rich agricuL 
tural district, many of whose needs are met by the city's 
manufactures. 

Two cities of later development are Johnstown, the seat 
of the enormous Cambria Iron Works, and Altoona, forty 
miles distant, whose chief manufactory is the great car 
and locomotive works of the Pennsylvania Railroad. 

5. Later Colonial History. 

(a) Of the numerous governors of colonial Pennsylvania, 
Sir William Keith is perhaps the best known, from his 
connection with Benjamin Franklin. It was Keith who 
induced the Assembly to issue well-secured paper money, 
which relieved trade conditions in 1723. A prominent 
leader in the colony's history at this period was the 
learned James Logan, originally William Penn's secre- 
tary. 

(b) Greatest of all the men of the colony was Benjamin 
Franklin. Early in life he had built up an excellent busi- 
ness as printer, engaging in the colony's political affairs 
at the same time. The paper which he conducted from 
1729, the ''Pennsylvania Gazette," had great influence 
throughout the colonies. So, too, had his almanac, pub- 
lished under the name of Richard Saunders ("Poor Rich- 
ard's Almanac") from 1732, for twenty-five years. 

Franklin became a member of the Assembly in 1751. 
He was sent as a delegate to the convention held at Albany 
in 1754, to consider some plan of defence against the 
French and Indians. His plan of a governor-general, to 
be appointed by the king, and of a council composed of 
representatives chosen by the colonial Assemblies, failed 
of adoption. 



14 

Franklin's clear mind served the colony well, when the 
Pennsylvania Assembly sent him as its agent to protest 
before the English government regarding the refusal of 
the proprietors, Thomas and Richard Penn, to pay taxes. 
He won the colony's cause, and remained in England as 
general colonial agent until 1762. 

(c) The French and Indian War checked Pennsylva- 
nia's prosperity for a while. The Ohio Valley was desired 
by the French and the English. Virginia sent Washing- 
ton to request the commanders of the forts in northwest- 
ern Pennsylvania to withdraw their forces; but this was, 
of course, refused, and war resulted. The main engage- 
ment in Pennsylvania occurred near Fort Duquesne, 
which the French had seized in 1754. Braddock, with 
about two thousand men, marched slowly from Virginia 
toward Fort Duquesne in 1755. He would take no advice 
from Washington, and was conquered near the fort by a 
little force of nine hundred French and Indians. 

Later, an expedition under Forbes and Washington 
occupied Fort Duquesne in 1758, renaming it after Pitt, 
the greatest English statesman of that day. 

(d) Pontiac's War was the most serious Indian war in 
Pennsylvania. This wily Indian was chief of the Ottawas, 
a tribe living along the Great Lakes. He formed a great 
alliance of the Indians of the Lake region and the Mis- 
sissippi Valley; and in 1763, they attacked Pennsylvania's 
western forts. For a time, the Indians threatened to de- 
vastate all the region west of the Susquehanna. A little 
army under Colonel Bouquet, however, cleared the colony 
of its Indian foes in 1763, and the next year the war Avas 
ended in the Ohio country. 



15 



6. Boundary Disputes. 



The disputes regarding the boundaries of Pennsylvania 
were long and bitter. Connecticut, by its charter, was 
given a grant extending "from the Atlantic to the 
Pacific." Connecticut, therefore, asserted a claim to 
nearly all of the upper half of Pennsylvania. 

A Connecticut settlement was made in Wyoming Valley 
in this disputed section, but it was destroyed by Indians 
in 1763. Settlers from each colony determined to hold the 
land, and hostilities continued for two years. The dispute 
was settled in 1782, by a commission appointed by Con- 
gress. It awarded the land to Pennsylvania. 

Virginia claimed Pittsburgh and the western end of the 
State, and the matter was not settled till 1779. 

The dispute with Maryland dated from the beginning 
of Penn's grant, and it lasted more than eighty years. 
Lord Baltimore claimed a belt extending across the State 
and including Philadelphia. Finally, in 1763, two Eng- 
lish astronomers, Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon, were 
employed to draw the present southern boundary line. 
These, after four years' labor, completed the boundary for 
over two hundred miles, giving the famous Mason and 
Dixon's line. 

Note 1. — Mason and Dixon cut a path twenty-four feet wide through 
the forest, marking the boundary line in its centre. A stone marked 
each mile; every fifth milestone bore on the north the arms of the 
Penns, and on the south, the arms of Lord Baltimore. Indian oppo- 
sition made the work difficult, and prevented its entire completion by 
Mason and Dixon. Other surveyors completed the line in 1782. 

Note 2. — The boundary between Pennsylvania and Delaware was 
surveyed by David Eittenhouse, the Pennsylvania astronomer. He also 
marked out the northern boundary, along the forty-second parallel, in 
1785-1787. 



16 

7. Education. 

Education received much attention in Pennsylvania. 
The first school was opened in Philadelphia in 1683, with 
Enoch Flower as teacher. The first grammar school was 
established in Philadelphia in 1G89. It was maintained 
by Friends, but was free to the poor. Christopher Dock, 
noted for his kindness and his devotion to his work, taught 
school in the old IMennonite log church of Germantown, 
from 1740 for many years. 

Primary education grew slowly ; for in 1833 only 24,000 
pupils attended the public schools. Governor AVolf, in his 
message of 1833, urged the need of an improved system of 
public schools, and the law of 1834 established a general 
system of free, common-school education. The Senate of 
Pennsylvania repealed the law in 1835, but the House, 
induced by the eloquence of Thaddeus Stevens, refused 
to agree, and the public schools of to-day became possible. 
From then on they spread over the State. 

The school term has gradually lengthened from three 
months in some of the rural districts to ten months. The 
buildings have improved from rude, unpainted buildings 
with rough benches to the modern type of comfortable 
buildings. The text-books and the character of the teach- 
ing have also made great advancement, the latter being 
due to the direct training given by the State and the cities 
to those intending to become teachers. 

Higher education in Pennsylvania owes much of its de- 
velopment to Franklin. The present University of Penn- 
sylvania began in 1749, when the ''Academy and Charit- 
able School of the Province of Pennsylvania," on Fourth 
Street, below Arch, was founded by Franklin and others. 



17 

In 1755, this school was called "The College, Academy 
and Charitable School of Philadelphia;" in 1779, it be- 
came the University of the State of Pennsylvania, and 
in 1791, the University of Pennsylvania. 

Note. — Pennsylvania has now more than thirty colleges. Besides 
the University of Pennsylvania, the State has, among others, the Uni- 
versity of Pittsburgh, at Pittsburgh; Lafayette College, at Easton; 
Lehigh University, at South Bethlehem; Dickinson College, at Car- 
lisle; Bucknell University, at Lewisburg; Haverford College, at 
Haverford; Bryn Mawr College (for women), at Bryn Mawr; La 
Salle College, at Philadelphia; the Theological Seminary of St. Charles 
Borromeo, at Overbrook; Washington and Jefferson College, at Wash- 
ington; and Franklin and Marshall College, at Lancaster. 



8. Colonial Life. 

(a) The main occupation in colonial Pennsylvania was 

farming. There were no patroons as in New York, nor 

great planters as in the South, most of the farmers living 

on small farms which they cultivated in person. The 

Quakers as a class opposed slavery ; . hence there were but 

few negro slaves in the colony. The farmer usually began 

with a log cabin in a forest clearing; this developed into 

the farm with its fields and orchards. From the flax and 

wool produced on the farm, the farmer 's wife usually 

made the cloth for the family's clothing. Grain, fruit, 

and cattle were raised in abundance, and these, with flour 

from the grist-mills and lumber from the saw-mills, were 

their chief sources of wealth. 

Note. — Dr. Benjamin Rush describes the German farmers of colonial 
days with ■'' extensive fields of grain, full fed herds, luxuriant mead- 
ows, orchards promising loads of fruit, together with spacious barns 
and commodious stone dwelling-houses.'' 

(b) In the towns and cities, commerce was the chief 
occupation, the manufacturing being on a very small scale. 
Workmen connected with various trades found ample oc- 



18 

cnpation in the cities. The products of the surrounding 
farms and flour-mills were sold in the city shops, besides 
manufactured articles imported from England. 

Philadelphia was a very attractive town in colonial days. 
The houses were usually substantial, two-story dwellings, 
often surrounded b}^ gardens. The houses were heated by 
open fireplaces, where logs were burnt; they were lighted" 
by tallow candles. 

The shops in many of the dwellings had as signs, a 
basket, a beehive, etc., to indicate what was for sale. 
Great trading-houses developed in the city, carrying on 
commerce with distant ports, using in many cases ships 
built in Philadelphia shipyards. The city soon became the 
chief trade centre of the colonies, with a population of 
40,000 at the time of the Revolution. 

Note. — The State House of Philadelphia is located on Chestnut 
Street, between Fifth and Sixth Streets. Its foundations were laid 
in 1732, part of it being. completed for the Assembly's use in 1735. 
When finished, the building was the finest of its kind in the colonies. 
After the Declaration of Independence was announced in 1776, the 
building took its present name of Independence Halh 

The oast room is known as Independence Chamber. The table on 
which the Declaration of Independence was signed stands in this room, 
as does also the chair in which John Hancock sat as president of the 
Second Continental Congress. In this room. Congress met from 1775 
to 1783. Here the design of the nation's flag was adopted by Con- 
gress, June 14, 1777. Here, in 1787^ the Federal Convention, with 
Washington as presiding officer, drew up the Constitution for the new 
nation. 

The most interesting object in Independence Hall is the Liberty 
Bell. The committee appointed in 1751 to secure a bell for the State 
House tower decided to have it cast in London. The motto, selected 
for the bell l)y l^aac Norris, was ''Proclaim liberty throughout all 
the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." The bell Avas brought 
over from England in 1752, and soon began its patriotic career, ring- 
ing out the news of the great events in the history of the colonies' 
struggle for liberty. 

The bell tolled 'last at the funeral of Chief Justice Marshall, in 
1835, a great split in the side silencing its tones forever. Yet it still 



19 

speaks of liberty to the millions who come to view this cherished relic 
of the Eevolution. 

Congress Hall is a separate building, situated at the corner of Sixth 
and Chestnut Streets; it was erected in 1788 and 1789. Here the 
Congress of the United States met from 1790 to 1800, when Philadel- 
phia was the national capital, the Senate meeting on the second floor, 
and the House of Eepresentatives on the first floor. Washington took 
the oath of office here, after his second election as president; here 
John Adams was inaugurated on March 4, 1797; here, in December, 
1796, Washington delivered his Farewell Address to the people of the 
United States. 



9. Pennsylvania during the Revolution. 

(a) England had restricted colonial manufacture and 
commerce. The effort on her part to tax the colonists 
without their consent caused the war known as the Revo- 
lution. The Stamp Act, laying a stamp tax on all public 
and private documents, led to resistance in Pennsylvania 
as elsewhere. When the stamps arrived in 1765, the peo- 
ple refused to use them or to buy British goods while the 
law remained in force. This loss of trade led England to 
repeal the law in 1766. Other taxes followed in 1767, and 
pamphlets were written against Parliament's idea of 
''taxation without representation." John Dickinson, a 
lawyer of Philadelphia, wrote the famous ''Letters of a 
Pennsylvania Farmer," which had a great influence in 
causing the people of the colonies to resist the English 
taxes. He showed that if England taxed the colonies to 
pay colonial governors and judges, these officers would no 
longer be dependent on their own colonial Assemblies, but 
would be forced to obey the king and Parliament. 

In 1770, all taxes were removed except the small tax 
on tea, of three pence per pound. This tax was insisted 
on by the obstinate George III. to prove his right to tax 
the colonists. One of the tea ships came to Philadelphia 



20 

in 1773. When this ship, "Polly," arrived, a popular 
meeting was held in the. State House j^ard; the captain 
was ordered to take his cargo of tea back, and the next 
day he and the tea sailed for England. , 

Note. — Paul Tievere was sent from Boston in 1775, to bring the 
news of the battle of Lexington. The State House bell announced 
the news of the battle to the 8,000 people assembled near by. It was 
clear that the war had begun. 

(b) Every colony except Georgia sent delegates to the 
First Continental Congress which met in Philadelphia in 
1774. The fifty-five delegates assembled in Carpenters' 
Hall, and continued in session for about two months. The 
Congress passed a Declaration of Rights, demanding the 
right of the colonists to levy their own taxes and make 
their own local laws in the colonial Assemblies. It also 
recommended the stopping of all commercial intercourse 
with England. It called a second Congress to meet in 
May, 1775. 

Peyton Randolph, of Virginia, was president of the Con- 
gress. Washington, John Dickinson, Patrick Henry, 
Samuel Adams, and John Adams were some of its leading 
members. 

Note 1. — Lord Chatham said that ''for solidity of reasoning, force 
of sagacity, and wisdom of conclusion under such a complication of 
circumstances, no nation or body of men can stand in preference to 
the general Congress at Philadelphia. ' ' 

Note 2. — Carpenters' Hall is located in the roar of the south side 
of Chestnut Street, between Third and Fourth Streets, Philadelphia. 
It was owned by an organization of master carpenters, and was occu- 
pied first in 1771, although unfinished then. The First Continental 
Congress met here in 1774. During the Kevolution, the basement was 
used as a storehouse for American ammunition. The first Bank of the 
United States occupied the building from 1791 to 1797. From 1817, 
the Second Bank of the United States occupied it for five years. At 
present the Carpenters' Company owns the hall, keeping it and its 
historic relics on view for visitors. 



21 

(c) John Penn was governor of Pennsylvania from 
1763 to 1776 excepting during his absence in England, 
from 1771 to 1773, when his brother Richard held the posi- 
tion. Both were respected by the people, but the end of 
the rule of the Penns came in 1775, when the Assembly 
superseded Governor Penn by a Council of Safety. This 
body remained the executive power for about a year. A 
constitution for the new State of Pennsylvania went into 
effect in the autumn of 1776. This provided for a legisla- 
tive body called the General Assembly, whose members 
were to be elected by the people. The executive power 
was vested in a president, with an advisory council of 
twelve members called the Supreme Executive (^ouncil. 

(d) The Second Continental Congress met in Phila- 
delphia in May, 1775, with John Hancock, of Boston, as 
president. Its sessions lasted with occasional adjournments 
until 1781. It was the head of the government during the 
Revolution. The most prominent delegate from Pennsyl- 
vania was Benjamin Franklin, who had lately returned 
from England. 

This Congress organized the American Continental Army, 
and passed measures to raise funds to support it; it also 
appointed George Washington commander-in-chief of the 
army. 

On June 7, 1776, a resolution Avas offered in the Con- 
tinental Congress by Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, pro- 
posing colonial independence. A committee of which 
Thomas Jefferson was chairman was then appointed to 
draw up a Declaration of Independence. Lee's resolution 
on colonial independence was adopted on the second day 
of July, and two days later, July 4, 1776, Congress adopted 



22 

Jefferson's Declaration of Independence, which gave the 
reasons for the separation. 

Note 1. — Thomas Paine was a political writer who had come to 
Philadelphia from England. He worked with Franklin, Eush, Eit- 
tenhouse, and other patriots to aid in securing the independence of 
the colonies. His pamphlet, ''Common Sense," appeared in January, 
1776. It urged separation from England, and exercised great influ- 
i-nce on the minds of the colonists. 

Note 2. — In Lee's resolution, offered in Congress on June 7, 1776, 
were tae words: 

"Besolved, That these united colonies' are, and of right ought to 
be free and independent States, that they are absolved from all 
allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection be- 
tween them and the state of Great Britain is and ought to be totally 
dissolved. ' ' 

Of course, to offer this resolution would mean death as a punish- 
ment for treason if the colonies shou.^ fail in their fight. 

The committee of Congress selected on June 11, 1776, to draft a 
Declaration of Independence consisted of Thomas Jefferson, of Vir- 
ginia; John Adams, of Massachusetts; Benjamin Franklin, of Penn- 
sylvania; Eoger Sherman, of Connecticut; and E. E. Livingston, of 
iNew York. Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, 
in a house at the southwest corner of Seventh and Market Streets, 
Philadelphia. It was presented to Congress on June 28th. On July 
1st, Congress voted on Lee's resolution for colonial independence. 
Dickinson opposed it, believing the people not yet ready to fight for 
independence; but the majority of Pennsylvania's delegates favored 
independence. Delaware's vote was changed for independence by 
Caesar Eodney 's eighty-mile ride on horseback. On July 2, 1776, 
Congress adopted Lee 's resolution almost unanimously, and this date 
is the real independence day. On July 4, 1776, Congress adopted 
Jefferson's Declaration, which gave the reasons for their act of July 
2d. On July 8th, the Declaration of Independence was read in the 
State House yard. The document was signed by the members on 
August 2d. The Pennsylvania signers were Benjamin Franklin, Eob- 
ert Morris, Dr. Benjamin Eush, and George Clymer, of Philadelphia; 
(leorge Eoss, of Lancaster; James Smith, of York; James Wilson, 
of Cumberland; George Taylor, of Northampton, and John Morton, 
of Chester County. President Hancock and Secretary Thompson 
signed it on July 4, 1776, Hancock saying: ''There! John Bull can 
read my name without spectacles, and may now double his reward 
of five hundred pounds for my head. ' ' 

Napoleon said of this act of Congress: "The finger of God was 
there. ' ' 



2S 

(e) The British Invasion of Pennsylvania.— ^Washing- 
ton, after retreating from New York across New Jersey, 
found safety for his army in Pennsylvania. The victory 
at Trenton at the close of 1776 saved Philadelphia for the 
time, and Congress returned from Baltimore. Money to 
support Washington's soldiers was now raised by Robert 
Morris in Philadelphia, who, on New Year's morning, 1777, 
sent him $50,000, secured by borrowing from friends. 

Howe was determined to secure the patriots' capital, 
and in the summer of 1777 he invaded Pennsylvania. He 
defeated Washington and Lafayette at Chadd's Ford on 
Brandywine Creek in southeastern Pennsylvania, and two 
weeks later entered Philadelphia in triumph. This caused 
a panic in the city. The Liberty Bell was taken to Allen- 
town and hidden; Congress fled to Lancaster and then to 
York. Washington retired to a camp on Skippack Creek, 
fourteen miles from Germantown, where most of the British 
were encamped. He surprised the enemy by his attack on 
October 4th. A fog caused some confusion in the Ameri- 
can lines, as did their unsuccessful attempt to take the Chew 
House, a strong stone house which the British had seized. 
Washington was obliged to retreat, leaving the British mas- 
ters of the city. Late in December, Washington went into 
winter quarters at Valley Forge, twenty miles from Phila- 
delphia. Food and clothing were scarce, and the sufferings 
of the patriots were severe during that terrible winter. 
Only about 5,000 were fit for duty. 

Meanwhile Howe's army lived in ease in Philadelphia, 
the officers devoting much time to pleasure. Franklin said, 
''Howe did not take Philadelphia — Philadelphia took 
Howe." When Clinton was given Howe's place as com- 
mander, the officers arranged the famous mischianza in 



24 

honor of General Howe, in May, 1777. After a regatta on 
the Delaware, the procession marched to the country-seat 
of Thomas Wharton, in the southern part of Philadelphia, 
where a tournament was held. The ball in the evening 
completed the revelry. 

Shortly after this pageant, the British evacuated the 
city, June 18, 1778. 

Note 1. — Just before the evacuation, three peace commissioners, 
sent by the British government, arrived in Philadelphia. They offered 
to agree to all American demands, if the colonists would abandon the 
idea of independence. Congress refused to consider their offers. 
General Joseph Eeed, one of the delegates from Pennsylvania, was 
ott'ered £10,000 if he would work with the commissioners to secure 
peace. He replied, **I am not worth purchasing; but such as I am, 
the king of Great Britain is not rich enough to do it. ' ' 

Note 2. — In June, 1778, the Wyoming massacre occurred in Penn- 
sylvania. A party of Tories and Indians from New York, led by 
Colonel Butler, invaded Wyoming. A small force of farmers was 
gathered to oppose them, but the brave band was conquered, many 
being cruelly put to death by the savages. The Indians soon began 
to plunder and destroy the settlement, and most of the helpless sur- 
vivors fled into the wilderness. 

Note 3. — The remainder of the war was fought outside Pennsyl- 
vania. One event indirectly connected with the city was Arnold's 
treason against the government. General Benedict Arnold had been 
left in command of the city for some time after the British evacua- 
tion. His marriage to the beautiful Peggy Shippen and his mansion 
on the Schuylkill caused him to live beyond his means, and his ex- 
travagance and mismanagement angered the people. His reprimand 
by Washington made him yearn for the revenge he tried to get by 
his treason at West Point. 

The year 1781 brought the end of the war with the triumph of 
Yorktown, and the Avatchman called out the glad news through the 
city streets, ''Past two o'clock, and Cornwallis is taken." 



10. The Concluding Part of the Eighteenth Century. 

(a) The State Constitution that went into effect in 
November, 1776, lasted till 1790. When the British held 
Philadelphia, Lancaster was the State capital, but in 1778 
Philadelphia again became its capital. 



25 

The Revolution ended the rule of the Penn family. 
In 1779, the State bought their unsold land in Pennsylvania 
for about $650,000 ; their private estates here remained, of 
course, in the family's possession. 

(b) The first national bank in America, called the 
Bank of North America, was established in Philadelphia. 
On the recommendation of Robert Morris, the charter was 
granted by Congress in December, 1781. It aided the 
government in meeting its money obligations, and saved 
the Continental Army from disbanding. 

Note. — Alexander Hamilton, as Secretary of the Treasury in Wash- 
ington's administration, recommended to Congress the establishment 
of the Bank of the United States in Philadelphia. It was chartered 
in 1791 for twenty years. The bank was refused a charter at the 
expiration of this time in 1811; in 1812 it became the Bank of 
Stephen Girard. In 1816, Congress chartered a second Bank of the 
United States for twenty years, and it soon controlled the monetary 
affairs of the nation, since it held the funds of the government. By 
Jackson's opposition, no new charter was given in 1836. 

(e) The Articles of Confederation were the supreme 
law of the nation from 1781 to 1789. They left the States 
independent and gave little power to the national Congress, 
which consisted of only one body. Congress could not com- 
pel obedience to its laws, nor could it compel the raising 
of Federal taxes. To end the disorder resulting from such 
a weak government, a Convention was called to meet in 
Philadelphia to revise the Articles. 

Among the delegates sent by Pennsylvania were Benjamin 
Franklin, James Wilson, Robert Morris, and Gouvemeur 
Morris. Washington was president of the Convention. 
The delegates saw that the Articles could not be revised, and 
they drew up instead the present Constitution. 

To secure the ratification of the Constitution by the States 
was a slow process. In Pennsylvania, the eastern section 



26 

favored it, while the western counties opposed it. The 
convention decided in favor of the new document, giving 
Pennsylvania's vote for the ratification. 

The agitation regarding the new national Constitution 
brought about a desire for a new State Constitution, which 
was adopted in 1790. It provided for a Senate and a House 
of Representatives; the governor was to be elected by the 
people and he was to appoint the judges. All white males 
over twent3-one had the right to vote. This constitution 
lasted till 1838. 

Note 1. — The first governor elected was Thomas Miffin. 

Note 2. — The Pennsylvania Constitution of 1838 made many of 
the positions elective to which the governor had formerly appointed; 
it abolished all. lite offices, and required a Senate confirmation for the 
governor's nominations of judges. In 1873, another State Consti- 
tution was adopted. This gave the right of suffrage to all male 
citizens instead of only to ' ' white freemen ; " it also increased the 
number of members in the Legislature, and made its sessions bien- 
nial. 

Note 3. — Philadelphia remained the State capital till 1799, the 
Legislature meeting in Independence Hall. The State capital was 
at Lancaster from 1799 till 1812, and at Harrisburg from 1812 on. 

Philadelphia was the national capital from 1790 to 1800. Con- 
gress met in the building at the corner of Sixth and Chestnut Streets, 
while the Supreme Court sat in the building at Fifth and Chestnut. 
President Washington lived in a house belonging to Robert Morris, 



(d) The Whiskey Insurrection in 1791 arose among 
the Scotch-Irish farmers of Western Pennsylvania. They 
could find no ready market for their grain owing to bad 
roads, and they distilled it into whiskey. When Congress 
in 1791, in order to raise revenue laid a tax on this whiskey, 
the people revolted. They assaulted the government col- 
lectors, and their armed resistance prevented the collection 
for several years. In 1794, Washington sent an army of 



15,000 and the people submitted. The leaders of the in- 
surrection were convicted of treason, but were pardoned by 
Washington. 

(e) Yellow fever broke out in Philadelphia in the sum- 
mer of 1793, brought there by white refugees from Hayti. 
Thousands fled from Philadelphia in terror, and business 
was at a standstill. The plague raged for one hundred 
days. A special hospital was established, and here the 
wealthy Stephen Girard gave his services as nurse for sixty 
days, showing the highest courage and philanthropy. 
Among the brave physicians of the time none surpassed 
the famous Dr. Benjamin Rush in his devotion to duty. 
The number of deaths from this plague was about five thou- 
sand, or one-ninth of the population. 

Note. — In 1797, there was a return of the plague. It took many- 
years for science to conquer this disease. 

II. The War of 1812. 

The city of Erie was the only part of Pennsylvania where 
any actual fighting occurred in this war. The British had 
a number of vessels on Lake Erie, and the United States 
government decided to build a fleet at Erie. Captain Oliver 
H. Perry was sent to Erie to direct this construction in 
1813. The battle between the two fleets occurred near the 
western end of the lake, enabling Perry to send his proud 
message, ''We have met the enemy and they are ours." 

The war greatly interfered with the State's ocean com- 
merce, British ships capturing various merchant vessels. 
This war by preventing importation of foreign manufac- 
tures, stimulated American ones, and gave Pennsylvania 
first rank as a manufacturing State for many years. 



12. The Development of Modes and Routes of Trans- 
portation. 

(a) Colonial inland commerce in eastern Pennsylvania 
was carried on by means of wagons that moved slowly over 
the poor roads. In the West, trains of pack-horses carried 
the goods through the forests. Thus, the iron made in 
the Juniata Valley was sent to Philadelphia and Pittsburgh 
by groups of horses, divided into sections of twelve or 
fifteen. The Conestoga wagon with its linen cover, its 
broad wheels, and its six or more horses, came into use 
about 1760. Such a wagon could transport four tons. They 
became very numerous, and were of great importance to 
commerce. 

The first stone turnpike in the United States extended 
between Philadelphia and Lancaster. It was called the 
Lancaster Pike, and was built between 1792 and 1794. In 
the year 1806 it was carried to Pittsburgh. Many emigrants 
and much commerce passed over this highway. 

In 1811, the national government began the construction 
of the National Road, a fine highway, running west from 
Cumberland; Maryland, to Wheeling, West Virginia, and 
thence into Ohio'. Of this road, seventy-five miles were in 
Pennsylvania. Up to 1830, good solid roads were built in 
every direction through the State; after that date, the 
building of railroads began. 

Passengers in colonial days were transported by stage- 
coach. New York was a two-day journey from Philadel- 
phia in the days of the stagecoach. In 1801, a line of 
stagecoaches was established from Philadelphia to Pitts- 
burgh, the trip taking seven days. 

(b) River commerce dates almost from the beginning of 
colonial history. After the Revolution, much attention was 



29 

given to improving the streams for purposes of navigation. 
With the invention of the steamboat, their value was greatly 
increased. John Fitch, a native of Connecticut, after re- 
peated trials, built a steamboat which made regular trips 
on the Delaware, between Philadelphia and Burlington, in 
1790. The invention was not satisfactory, . and the boat 
was finally abandoned. 

Fulton with his ''Clermont" in 1807 was the first to 
succeed with steam navigation. Steamboats traversing the 
rivers of Pennsylvania, soon swelled the commerce of Phila- 
delphia and Pittsburgh, the trade of the latter city in the 
Ohio and Mississippi Valleys reaching immense proportions 
by this means. 

(c) Another development of commerce came with the 
building of canals. The Schuylkill Canal joined Philadel- 
phia and Pottsville in 1825; it connected with the Union 
Canal from the Susquehanna to the Schuylkill near Reading 
in 1827. In 1829, a canal was built across Delaware con- 
necting the Delaware with Chesapeake Bay. Later, by the 
opening of the Delaware and Raritan Canal across New 
Jersey, a canal route was made from New York to Philadel- 
phia to Baltimore. In 1840, there were about one thousand 
miles of canals in Pennsylvania ; the building of railroads, 
however, soon caused a great reduction in canal trafiic. 

Note. — -To rival the Erie Canal and reduce the cost of freight be- 
tween Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, an arrangement of railroad and 
canal was devised. A railroad was built between Philadelphia and 
Columbia. From here, a canal extended up the Susquehanna to the 
Juniata, and up the Juniata to Hollidaysburg. A portage railroad, 
thirty-six miles long, crossed the Alleghanies to Johnstown, station- 
ary engines drawing the cars up the mountain and lowering them 
by an endless wire rope. From here a canal, following the Cone- 
maugh and Alleghany Rivers, was built to Pittsburgh, a distance of 
one hundred and four miles. This great Pennsylvania Canal was 



30 

completed in 1834, and was of great commercial importance. In 
1857, the main line of the canal was bought by the Pennsylvania 
Railroad Company, but it was soon abandoned, none of it being now 
in use. 

(d) The first railroad in Pennsylvania to convey pas- 
sengers and freight was the Germantown Road; the first 
passenger train that left Philadelphia was drawn by horses, 
but in November, 1832, a locomotive was put on. In 1834, 
a railroad Avas built from Philadelphia to Columbia, and 
from then on, railroads increased rapidly. By 1860, the 
railroad had displaced the stagecoach and the canal boat, 
saving much time and greatly aiding in the development 
of commerce. 



13. The Development of Pennsylvania's Industries. 

(a) Agriculture has always been a leading occupation 
of the State, owing to its fertile soil and temperate climate. 
The increased demand for food stuffs resulting from the 
increased population made farming profitable. The use of 
improved farming methods, and the use of modern agricul- 
tural machinery have developed agriculture greatly. 

(b) Commerce developed with the improvement of the 
roads, the invention of the steamboat, the building of 
canals, and the growth of railroads. One authority says: 
''The growth of American shipping from 1789 to 1807 is 
without parallel in the history of the commercial world." 
The early exports were chiefly agricultural products; but 
with the later development of manufacturing and mining, 
other products were exported. Philadelphia and Pittsburgh 
became the State's great trading centres, each controlling 
an immense volume of trade. 



31 



(c) During the colonial period there was but little manu- 
facturing. This industry became important after the Fed- 
eral Constitution gave the government the power to lay a 
protective tariff. In 1789, hosiery, hats, and cotton and 
woolen goods were manufactured. By 1790, one-fourth of 
the men in Philadelphia were engaged in manufacturing. 
The Embargo Act and the Non-Intercourse Act, preceding 
the "War of 1812, with the war itself, stimulated American 
manufactures, since European goods were almost impossible 
to obtain. The protective tariff acts of 1824 and 1828 
greatly stimulated manufacturing. After 1840, with the 
development of her coal and iron supplies, Pennsylvania 
became after New York, the chief manufacturing State of 
the nation. 

(d) There was some little mining in colonial days. Iron 
was early mined in Pennsylvania. Forges were in operation 
in various parts of the colony, and wrought iron cannons 
were made here for the Continental Army. In 1786, there 
were seventeen forges or furnaces around Lancaster. The 
Phoenix Iron Works at Phoenixville were started in 1790. 
The first foundry at Pittsburgh was established in 1803. 
The use of coal in the blast furnaces, about 1840, made 
Pittsburgh one of the world's great iron centres; the vast 
bituminous coal supply of the region around it and the 
river transportation of ore, fuel, and finished products 
caused the great development of this industry. The richest 
iron ore of the State comes from the Cornwall mines, near 
Lebanon, but four other States surpass Pennsylvania in the 
amount of ore mined ; Pittsburgh, McKeesport, Johnstown, 
and other adjacent cities get most of their iron ore from 
Michigan. The Pittsburgh district produces most of the 
iron and steel manufactured, though there are extensive iron 



32 

and steel works in South Bethlehem, Steelton, Reading, 
Scranton, Allentown, Easton, and Phoenixville. 

The vast deposits of bituminous coal lying west of the 
Alleghanies were early discovered, and the coal was used in . 
forges and furnaces. Pittsburgh became the centre of the 
industries dependent on this fuel. 

Anthracite coal was discovered in the Wyoming Yalley 
in 1766. In 1791, a hunter named Philip Ginter found 
''stone coal" near Mauch Chunk. Ginter 's discovery led to 
the formation of a great coal company. The blockade of 
the War of 1812, which caused the development of Ameri- 
can manufactures, created the need for the new fuel. Little 
was sold before 1820, when the first canal brought the coal 
to the eastern cities of the State; later, the railroads car- 
ried it, the Philadelphia and Reading Road being chartered 
in 1833. The anthracite coal region lies in Lackawanna, 
Luzerne, Carbon, Schuylkill, and Northumberland Counties, 
Scranton and Wilkes-Barre being the chief cities developed 
by the anthracite coal industry. 

(e) Lumbering was an important industry even in colo- 
nial days; later the ship-yards of Philadelphia, Erie, and 
Pittsburgh used large quantities of lumber. With the in- 
crease in factories and railroads, a greater demand for 
lumber was created. The chief city concerned in this in- 
dustry is Williamsport on the West Branch of the Sus- 
quehanna; its immense lumber boom to hold the logs sent 
down the river each spring can hold 300,000,000 feet of 
lumber. Another important lumber centre is Lock Haven. 

(f) Petroleum is an important production of Pennsyl- 
vania. The industry dates from 1859, when Edwin L. 
Drake "struck oil," after sinking a pipe to the depth of 



33 

sixty-nine feet, near Titusville. This city, Oil City, and 
Bradford were the chief oil centres. The oil is now trans- 
ported to the great cities of the East by the pipe line ; the 
length of pipe-line transporting the oil production of Penn- 
sylvania is about 25,000 miles. 

Pennsylvania ranks sixth among the oil-producing States. 

Note. — ''The trunk line to Philadelphia begins at Colgrove, Mc- 
Kean County, its six-inch pipe extending over a distance of 235 
miles. ' ' 

(g) The slate quarries of Northampton, Lehigh, and 

Berks Counties are important. The first quarry was 

opened about the year 1812. Slatington is the centre of 

this industry. 

Note.— The nickel mines in Lancaster County were once important, 
as was the zinc mine of Lehigh County. The limestone deposits and 
the brownstone quarries of the State are important. One-half of all 
the cement made in the United States comes from Pennsylvania, and 
two-fifths of the glass, Pittsburgh being the centre of glass manu- 
facture. 



14. The Antislavery Question. 

(a) Between 1850 and 1860, the antislavery party grew 
rapidly in Pennsylvania. Its beginnings were stormy. In 
1833, a convention met at Philadelphia to form the Ameri- 
can Antislavery Society, and riots resulted between the 
whites and the negroes. A serious riot broke out in 1838, 
when the Society's building, Pennsylvania Hall, was being 
dedicated. The mob set the building on fire, completely de- 
stroying it. 

Public opinion gradually changed in favor of the anti- 
slavery party. For years, the slaves escaping from the 
South were helped by Pennsylvanians to gain freedom, par- 
ties being passed by night from one hiding-place to another. 



34 

until they reached Canada. This system from its secrecy 
was called "The Underground Railroad." When Congress 
passed a new Fugitive Slave Law in 1850, it became a crime 
to assist a fugitive slave. This irritated the North, and in- 
creased the opposition to slavery. 

Note 1. — Thomas Garrett, a Wilmington Friend, is said to have 
aided 2,700 slaves to escape. 

A noted case occurred in 1855^ when a Southern planter with three 
slaves passed through Philadelphia. The agent of the Abolition 
Society, Passmore Williamson, held the owner till the slaves escaped. 
The case was taken to court, but Williamson was finally released 
when he showed that the slaves were beyond his control and could not 
be produced in court. 

Note 2. — About this time^ the districts around Philadelphia were 
joined with it. The original city limits were from Vine to South 
Street, and between the two rivers. In 1854, the surrounding inde- 
pendent districts of Southwark, Moyamensing, Spring Garden, North- 
ern Liberties, Kensington, Richmond, Belmont, Germantown, Mana- 
yunk, etc., became part of Philadelphia; its boundaries were made 
to include the entire county, all being under one city government. 

(b) The Republican party, formed in 1856, was opposed 
to the extension of slavery. Its first National Convention 
was held in Philadelphia, in June, 1856. The Republicans 
lost their first election, James Buchanan, the Democratic 
candidate, being elected. This president was the only one 
ever selected from Pennsylvania. 

John Brown's raid and his execution in 1859 added to 
the antislavery feeling. He had made Chambersburg his 
base of operations before going to Harper's Ferry. His 
death enraged the Abolitionists and this feeling contributed 
to the growth of the Republican party. 

In 1860 it elected Andrew G. Curtin as governor of Penn- 
sylvania, and Abraham Lincoln as president of the nation. 

(c) Pending Lincoln's inauguration, Buchanan did no- 
thing. While the States were seceding, he made no opposi- 



35 

tion, believing that lie had no right to force a State to 
remain in the Union, and being dominated by Southern 
influence. 

In January, 1861, Curtin, the ''War Governor," began 
his administration, and on March 4th Lincoln was inaug- 
urated. When he called for the first volunteers on April 
15, 1861, Pennsylvania responded generously, recruits pour- 
ing into Harrisburg by the thousands. This State's total 
contribution to the Federal armies amounted to 380,000 
men. 

Camp Curtin near Harrisburg was a great military sta- 
tion all through the war. The extra volunteers after the 
first call were organized by Curtin into a reserve corps, to 
be drilled and equipped for any later emergency. These 
Pennsylvania Reserves were called for by Lincoln after the 
defeat at Bull Run, and they made fine soldiers. Curtin 
kept on organizing troops throughout the war, supporting 
Lincoln with all his powers. He aided the wounded, and 
secured the establishment of schools for the care and educa- 
tion of soldiers' orphans. 

Note 1. — Lincoln, on the way to his inauguration, made a speech 
in Independence Hall on February 22d. In it he said, ''I would 
rather be assassinated on this gpot than surrender that sentiment in 
the Declaration of Independence which gave liberty, not alone to the 
people of this country, but hope to the world, for all future time. ' ' 
On the evening of that day, hearing of a plot to kill him in Balti- 
more, he went secretly from Harrisburg to Washington. 

Note 2. — The people of Pennsylvania showed much hospitality to 
the soldiers passing through their towns and cities. In Philadelphia, 
all through the war, the Union and Cooper-shop volunteer refreshment 
saloons gave the passing soldiers something to eat and drink, nearly 
a million soldiers being thus welcomed. Philadelphia also held a 
great fair in Logan Square, by which $1,500,000 was raised for the 
benefit of sick and wounded soldiers. 

This fair was held under the auspices of the United States Sani- 
tary Commission, an organization formed to give aid to soldiers and 
sailors. It maintained hospitals for them, and distributed clothing 
and other supplies for the soldiers' comfort. 



36 

(d) Pennsylvania was much exposed to Southern raids 
because of its nearness. In 1862, General Stuart made a 
cavalry raid into Pennsylvania. His men encamped around 
Chambersburg, but the raiders returned to Virginia without 
doing any great damage. Early 's raiders in 1864 appeared 
before Chambersburg, demanding a payment of $200,000 in 
gold to save the town from burning. As the money was 
not paid, the city was burned, causing a loss of three million 
dollars' worth of property and making three thousand peo- 
ple homeless. 

(e) The greatest event of the war in Pennsylvania was 
the battle of Gettysburg. In 1863 this was a small town of 
twenty-five hundred inhabitants, located in an agricultural 
section in southern Pennsylvania. Near its western limits 
lies Seminar}^ Ridge; on the east is Cemetery Ridge, with 
its three elevations known as Round Top, Little Round Top, 
and Gulp's Hill. General Reynolds, of the Union Army, 
was killed as the battle opened. The first day's fight raged 
till late in the afternoon, the Confederates, at its conclusion, 
liolding Seminary Ridge, and the Union forces. Cemetery 
Ridge. 

General Hancock had been sent in advance by Meade, and 
additional Union and Confederate troops marched all night 
to join in the battle. General Meade arrived about one 
o'clock on the morning of July 2d. He and Lee spent the 
morning of that day in preparation, the battle not beginning 
until the afternoon. General Sickles, of the Union left wing, 
was driven back by General Longstreet. The Confederates 
struggled desperately to gain Little Round Top, but the 
Union forces held it by great valor. 

The third day, July 3d, was marked by a terrific artillery 
contest between the two armies; for two hours, more than 



37 

two hundred cannons continued their deadly work. When 
this duel ended, Lee sent General Pickett with 15,000 men 
to attack the Union centre. After fearful slaughter by 
Hancock's infantry, the advancing Confederates were de- 
feated, and the battle was over. The effect of the battle 
was to ruin the Confederacy. From then on it lost its 
power. 

Note 1. — In the battle of Gettysburg, Lee had 70,000 men, and 
Meade about 93,000 ; the Union loss, in killed, wounded, and missing, 
was about 23,000; that of the Confederates, about 20,000. 

In the charge led by General Pickett^ the Confederates tried to 
march across a field a mile wide exposed to the Union batteries. 
Hancock bravely continued to direct his men after he was shot, and 
the Confederates after great loss of life withdrew. 

Note 2. — The battlefield of Gettysburg was made into a national 
cemetery with numerous Union monuments. It was dedicated on 
November 19, 1863. On this occasion President Lincoln delivered 
his famous Gettysburg address. 



15. The Period since the War. 

(a) Railroad construction was carried on extensively 
after the war, and this led to speculation. As a result, a 
panic occurred in 1873. One of the earliest failures was 
that of the great Philadelphia banking house of Jay Cooke 
and Company. This firm had greatly aided the govern- 
ment during the Civil War in helping it to borrow money. 
Other banks failed, factories were closed, and distress was 
general. Prosperity was not restored until 1879. 

(b) Severe labor troubles occurred at this time, many 
strikes marking the friction betw^een capital and labor. 
The worst in the series was a great railroad strike in 1877, 
riots being numerous and violent. At Pittsburgh, the 
fighting was serious and the loss of property great; the 



38 

disorder extended to many other parts of the State before 
peace was restored. 

The last great anthracite coal strike occurred in 1902. 
It caused a scarcity of coal and led to intervention by 
President Roosevelt, who persuaded the two sides to arbi- 
trate their dispute before a commission appointed by him. 

Note. — The Mollie Maguires were a secret society that terrorized 
the anthracite coal region for years. At last, in 1876, largely 
through the efforts of President Gowen, of the Philadelphia and 
Beading Eailroad, and of James McParlan, a young detective, nine- 
teen of the Mollies were convicted and hanged, and the order stamped 
out. — Adapted from Burnham 's ' ' Short History of Pennsylvania. ' ' 

(c) The Centennial Exposition, held at Philadelphia in 
1876 to commemorate the signing of the Declaration of 
Independence a century before, was the first of America's 
great fairs. In Fairmount Park a number of buildings 
were erected including the Main Exhibition Building, Ma- 
chinery Hall, Agricultural Hall, Horticultural Hall, Me- 
morial Hall for art, and various State and foreign build- 
ings. The Exposition was of value in showing foreigners 
our progress and in showing us our defects in art as com- 
pared with certain European nations. 

Note ]. — On July 4, 1874, was laid the corner-stone of the new 
City Hall of Philadelphia. This building is the largest public build- 
ing in America, having 634 rooms. The tower is 547 feet high. The 
building, with its furnishings, cost about $25,000,000. 

Note 2. — The bicentennial celebration of the arrival of William 
Penn was celebrated in Philadelphia in 1882. The ''Welcome's" 
duplicate came up the river, and a tableau showed Penn 's landing. 
A parade of 20,000 men illustrated the progress of the nation dur- 
ing the two hundred years. 

(d) Pennsylvania lias long been a Republican strong- 
hold, the people giving large majorities for the candidates 
advocating a high protective tariff; since 1861, Governor 
Pattison was the only governor not of the Republican party. 



39 

Among the State's later governors were John F. Hart- 
ranft, 1873-1879 ; Henry M. Hoyt, 1879-1883 ; Robert E. 
Pattison, 1883-1887 and 1891-1895; James A. Beaver, 
1887-1891; Daniel H. Hastings, 1895-1899; "William A. 
Stone, 1899-1903; Samuel W. Pennypacker, 1903-1907; 
Edwin S. Stuart, 1907-1911 ; and John K. Tener. 

Among Pennsylvanians prominent in national affairs 
were Edwin M. Stanton, who was Lincoln's Secretary of 
War; Thaddeus Stevens, who was a leader in Congress 
during the Civil War ; Simon Cameron, who was a United 
States senator from 1867 to 1877 ; Matthew S. Quay, who 
served as national senator most of the time from 1877 to 
1904; Samuel J. Randall, who was Speaker of the House 
from 1876 to 1881 ; Wayne MacVeagh, who was attorney- 
general in Garfield's cabinet; John Wanamaker, who was 
postmaster-general in Harrison's cabinet; and Charles 
Emory Smith. 

(e) The disastrous Johnstown flood occurred in May, 
1889. The Conemaugh, swollen by the floods, caused the 
breaking of a dam on the South Fork, a branch stream, 
ten miles above the manufacturing city of Johnstown. This 
released the waters of the great reservoir, and the mad 
stream rushed on Johnstown and the adjoining places, 
causing the loss of 2,200 lives. The people of the State 
and nation responded nobly with aid, a relief fund of 
more than a million dollars being raised; this was dis- 
tributed by a Relief Commission appointed by Governor 
Beaver. 

Note. — A famous snow-storm in eastern Pennsylvania occurred on 
March 11, 1888. This great blizzard interfered seriously with travel 
in all directions for several days. 



40 

(f) The new State capitol was practically completed in 
1906, forming one of the most beautiful buildings in the 
country. 

The building itself cost $4,000,000; the expenditure of 
$9,000,000 on its general equipment led to wide-spread in- 
dignation. The matter Avas investigated by a committee 
of the Legislature ; and as a result, the State recovered part 
of its money, and three of those concerned in the fraud 
we're imprisoned. 

]S[ote 1. — In 1905, in Governor Pennypacker 's administration, the 
Pennsylvania Mounted Police were organized. This body of two hun- 
dred and twenty-eight men has proved of great value in suppressing 
various riots throughout the State. 

Note 2. — Some places of historic interest in Philadelphia are Gloria 
Dei Church, on Swanson Street, below Christian, the oldest church 
building in the city ; St. Peter 's Episcopal Church, at Third and Pine, 
where Commodore Stephen Decatur is buried; St. Mary's Church, 
Fourth Street, above Spruce, where Commodore John Barry is buried; 
Christ Church, on Second Street, above Market, where Washington, 
Adams, and Franklin had pews, and where Robert Morris is buried; 
Christ Church Burying-Ground, at Fifth and Arch, where Benjamin 
Franklin, Dr. Benjamin Rush, Commodore Bainbridge, and Peyton 
Randolph are buried; Independence Hall, Chestnut Street, below 
Sixth; Carpenters' Hall, Chestnut Street, below Fourth; site of the 
Shippen mansion, 218-222 South Fourth, once the home of Peggy 
Shippen, Arnold's wife; site of Washington's residence, 530-536 
Market Street; sites of Franklin's residences, 325 Market Street and 
316 Market Street; sites of Robert Morris's residences, Sixth and 
Market and 720 Chestnut; site of the house in which Jefferson wrote 
the Declaration of Independence, 700 Market Street; Betsy Rosa 
House, 239 Arch Street, where was made the first American flag; the 
Bank of North America, the first bank in America, 305 Chestnut 
Street; office of the first Bank of the United States, 120 South Third 
Street, and the Chew Mansion, or Cliveden, at Germantown Avenue 
and Johnson Street. 

Some places of general interest are Girard College, an institution 
founded by Stephen Girard 's will for the education of male orphans, 
on Girard Avenue, west of Twentieth Street; the Philadelphia Mu- 
seums, with a fine geographical library and exhibits of the world's 
products, on Thirty-fourth Street, below Spruce; the Drexel Insti- 
tute, a famous technical school, at Thirty-second and Chestnut Streets; 
Cramp's shipyards, at Beach and Ball Streets; Baldwin's Locomotive 



41 

Works, at Broad and Callowhill Streets; the Academy of Natural 
Sciences, the oldest institution of its kind in America, at Nineteenth 
and Eace Streets; the United States Mint, the largest and finest in 
the world, on Spring Garden Street, between Sixteenth and Seven- 
teenth Streets; Memorial Hall, with its pictures, and Horticultural 
Hall, with its plants and liowers, in Fairmount Park; Bartram's Gar- 
den, near Fifty- fourth Street and Woodland Avenue; the University 
of Pennsylvania, near Thirty-third and Walnut Streets; and the 
United States Navy Yard, on League Island, at the foot of Broad 
Street. 



i6. Brief Biographies. 

John Barry (1745-1803) was a distinguished naval com- 
mander of the Revolution. He was born in Ireland and 
came to Philadelphia when about fifteen years old. He 
became a sailor, and later a captain of a trading vessel. 
On the outbreak of the Revolution, he was given command 
of the ''Lexington," with which he captured several 
British vessels. He and his men helped to row the boats 
across the icy Delaware when Washington surprised the 
Hessians at Trenton. In command of the ''Raleigh," in 
1778, he was attacked by two British ships ; after a battle, 
he ran his ship ashore and escaped to land. In command 
of the "Alliance," in 1781, he captured two British ships 
after a sharp engagement. In 1794, Barry was made com- 
mander of the new navy, which protected American com- 
merce with the West Indies during the difficulty with 
France in 1798. "The Father of the American Navy" 
died in Philadelphia a few years later. 

John Bartram (1699-1777) was one of the earliest of 
American botanists. He was brought up on a farm, and 
his great love for plants caused him to begin his famous 
botanical garden. It is situated in Philadelphia near Fifty- 
fourth Street and Woodland Avenue. By the aid of friends, 



42 

he travelled in the eolonies, gathering and studying botani- 
cal specimens. He died in Philadelphia, just after the 
British had captured the city during the Revolution. 

Andrew Carnegie (1837-) settled in Allegheny when 
he came to this country from Scotland at the age of ten; 
he began life there by working in a cotton factory. In 
1861 he made a fortune in oil; then he founded a rolling- 
mill, becoming the largest manufacturer of steel rails and 
iron in the world. From his enormous wealth, he has 
made liberal gifts of public libraries and other institutions 
to Pittsburgh and various other cities. 

Stephen Decatur (1779-1820) was born in Maryland. 
His family had left Philadelphia during the British occu- 
pation, but returned in 1779. He entered the navy as a 
young man, and soon distinguished himself. In 1804, in 
the harbor of Tripoli, he burned the American frigate 
''Philadelphia," which the Tripolitans had captured. He 
served with credit during the War of 1812. In 1815, he 
conquered the Algerine pirates, compelling the dey of Al- 
giers to make a satisfactory treaty of peace with the United 
States. In 1820, he was killed in a duel with Commodore 
James Barron. 

John Dickinson (1732-1808), though born in Maryland, 
is best known by his public services in Pennsylvania. He 
studied law in Philadelphia and London, and became a 
leading lawyer in Philadelphia. He took an active part in 
the politics of Pennsylvania. His famous ''Letters of a 
Pennsylvania Farmer" roused the colonists by showing 
them that if England taxed them to support colonial offi- 



43 

cers, the colonial Assemblies would have no control over 
them. He was a member of the First Continental Con- 
gress in 1774, and of the Second Continental Congress. 
In July, 1776, he opposed the Declaration of Independence, 
because he considered it premature. Later he served as 
a private soldier in the Continental Army. He was presi- 
dent of the Executive Council of Pennsylvania from 1782 
to 1785. In the Constitutional Convention of 1787, he aided 
greatly by his skill and wisdom, for he was a man of 
superior culture. 

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) was one of the greatest 
men America ever produced. Born in Boston of poor 
parents, his schooling was limited. He really was self- 
educated. Apprenticed to his brother, he learned printing, 
and at seventeen left for Philadelphia, beginning his own 
career. When twenty-three, he became editor and pro- 
prietor of a newspaper, the ''Pennsylvania Gazette," and 
three years later he began his famous "Poor Richard's 
Almanac," which he continued for twenty-five years. He 
early entered politics. In 1754, he was a delegate to the 
Albany Convention, suggesting a plan of union. (Describe 
it.) The Pennsylvania Assembly sent Franklin as agent 
to England, and while there, he opposed the passage of the 
Stamp Act of 1765. When summoned before Parliament 
the next year, his clear reasoning showed them the folly 
of the Stamp Act and aided in its repeal. On his return 
home to Philadelphia in 1775, he was chosen delegate to 
the Second Continental Congress, serving as a member of 
the committee that framed the Declaration of Indepndence. 
Being sent as ambassador to France, his wisdom and ability 
won the French, and an alliance between France and 



44 

America was formed in 1778. This alliance really secured 
our independence, by the aid that France gave us at that 
critical period. Franklin also aided in forming the treaty 
of 1783, which ended the Revolution. Over eighty years 
old, the nation still needed him, and he was a prominent 
member of the Convention that framed the Constitution in 
1787. The services of Franklin cannot well be overesti- 
mated. 

Stephen Girard (1750-1831), a French emigrant, reached 
Philadelphia as a young man in 1776, becoming there a 
grocer and a w^ine bottler. He prospered by his skill and 
industr}^ establishing a fleet of merchant vessels known in 
eveiy port, and becoming a millionaire. 

He show'ed rare heroism during the yellow fever epidemic 
in Philadelphia in 1793, nursing the sick in person, and 
aiding in every way possible. 

On the expiration of the charter of the United States 
Bank, Girard took it, forming ''The Bank of Stephen 
Girard," in 1812. He rescued the nation from ruin in 
181-1 by loaning about five million dollars to the almost 
bankrupt government, when no one else would take such a 
risk. He died in 1831, leaving the bulk of his immense 
fortune for a college for orphan boys, thus establishing one 
of Philadelphia's noblest charities. 

Note. — Girard College was opened in 1848. Here about sixteen 
hundred boys are kept and educated. The charity is limited to 
' ' poor Mhite male orphan children. ' ' The college grounds, containing 
forty-one acres, are located at Twentieth Street and Girard Avenue. 
The main building is a remarkably fine specimen of Greek archi- 
tecture. 

Elisha Kent Kane (1820-1857), the distinguished Arc- 
tic explorer, was born in Philadelphia. He was graduated 
from the medical department of the University of Penn- 



45 

sylvania. He served as surgeon in the navy, and visited 
many parts of the world. In 1850, he joined an Arctic 
expedition sent out in search of Sir John Franklin. In 
1853, he commanded a second expedition in search of the 
lost explorer. Kane's ship, the "Advance," spent two 
winters in the frozen North, with the temperature often 
forty degrees below zero. He succeeded in reaching the 
most northern point attained by the explorers of that time. 
The second spring Kane and his men left the frozen ''Ad- 
vance," and after a journey of nearly three months by 
sledge and open boat, they reached a settlement in safety. 
Kane explored more than a thousand miles of the coast of 
Greenland. He became a national hero by his daring and 
resolute labor in the Arctic regions. 

James Logan (1674-1751) came to America as William 
Penn's secretary in 1699. He was a fine scholar, knowing 
Greek, Latin, Hebrew, French, German, and was skilled in 
various sciences. He collected at his country-seat at Sten- 
ton, near Philadelphia, a library of three thousand volumes, 
now in the Philadelphia Library. He was never the actual 
governor of the colony, but he exercised great influence 
over its affairs as the friend of the Penn family. He was 
very friendly with the Indians and was often consulted by 
them. 

Robert Morris (1734-1806) was a distinguished Ameri- 
can statesman and financier. This rich Philadelphia banker 
and merchant took the side of the struggling colonists 
against England. He was a member of the Second Conti- 
nental Congress, signing the Declaration of Independence. 
In 1777, just after the battle of Trenton, in answer to 
Washington's request, Morris sent him fifty thousand dol- 



46 

lars, thus enabling Washington to keep his ill-paid army 
together. 

Morris gave over a million dollars to aid the army in the 
final campaigns, and his money helped to win Yorktown 
and independence. 

In 1781 he was Superintendent of Finance, serving for 
three years. He was a member of the Constitutional Con- 
vention of 1787, aiding in the formation of that instrument. 

After the war, owing to a business failure, he lost his 
fortune and was cast into a debtors' prison for four years, 
neglected by the government for which he had done so 
much. 

Lucretia Mott (1793-1880) was an American reformer. 
She belonged to the Society of Friends, and soon after her 
marriage came to Philadelphia. She opposed slavery and 
travelled extensively to lecture against intemi^erance and 
slavery. She was a prominent member of the Antislavery 
Society from its organization in 1833 ; she proved herself 
a steady friend of the negro. To the end of her days she 
was active in public matters, being an early leader in the 
woman's suffrage agitation. She was a woman of uncom- 
mon intelligence and of high moral character. 

Francis D. Pastorius (1651-1719) was born in Germany. 
He was brilliantly educated in the classical and modern 
languages, and in law. The Pietists desiring to secure land 
in Penn's new colony made Pastorius their agent. In 
1683, after a voyage of ten weeks from Germany, Pastorius 
arrived in Pennsylvania, secured a grant from Penn, and 
with a number of German immigrants made the settlement 
of Germantown. The first winter was a time of suffering, 



'47 

but the colony gradually won success under the leadership 
of Pastorius. He was a signer of the first American pro- 
test against slavery, this document being sent to the Friends' 
Meeting in Philadelphia. Pastorius taught school in Ger- 
mantown and Philadelphia until the last years of his life. 

Thomas Buchanan Read (1822-1872), a distinguished 
American poet and artist, was born in Chester County, 
Pennsylvania. He won his first success by his pictures, 
but his poems soon made him more famous. He spent ten 
years in Italy, having a delightful home in Florence. Read 
wrote his poem, the ''Wagoner of the AUeghanies, " about 
the time of the outbreak of the Civil War, the aim of the 
poem being to stimulate men's love for the Union by re- 
calling the nation's struggles to win freedom during the 
Revolution. Read for some time was a captain in the Union 
Army. He wrote his famous poem of "Sheridan's Ride" 
in 1864, completing it in a few hours. He also painted 
the well-known picture of ' ' Sheridan and His Horse. ' ' His 
best known lyrics are those in his "Lays and Ballads." 

David Rittenhouse (1732-1796), born near Philadelphia, 
was a descendant of the builder of the first paper-mill in 
America. He worked on his father's farm until he became 
a maker of clocks and mathematical instruments. His 
nights he gave to study, becoming a mathematician and 
astronomer. It was Rittenhouse who surveyed the boundary 
between Delaware and Pennsylvania and that between New 
York and Pennsylvania. He aided the patriot cause, serv- 
ing as a member of various committees and boards during 
the Revolution. Washington appointed him the first direc- 
tor of the mint established in Philadelphia in 1792. He 
died, honored by scientists the world over. 



48 

Betsy Ross was the wife of a nephew of George Ross, 
one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. She 
was a Quakeress, engaged in upholstering and fine sewing 
at 239 Arch Street, Philadelphia. Washington, Robert 
Morris, and George Ross called on her as a committee of 
Congress in June, 1777, requesting her to make a flag from 
a drawing they showed her. It was her suggestion that 
the stars in it should be five-pointed. She made the flag 
at their direction. 

Dr. Benjamin Rush (1745-1813) was born near Phila- 
delphia. He was graduated from Princeton College. After 
studying medicine at the University of Edinburgh, he re- 
turned to Philadelphia in 1769. His medical lectures at 
the University of Pennsylvania during many years made 
Philadelphia the centre of medical science in the United 
States. Besides his work as professor, he had a large prac- 
tice as physician. He fought the yellow fever epidemic 
of 1793 with great courage, sometimes visiting a hundred 
patients a day. He was an ardent patriot, signing the 
Declaration of Independence as a delegate to Congress from 
Pennsylvania. His writings on medical subjects were widely 
read. He is often called "The Father of American ]\Iedi- 
cine. " 

Edwin M. Stanton (18U-1869) was born in Ohio. He 
became a lawyer and settled in Pittsburgh, winning much 
success there in legal matters. He served for a while in 
Buchanan's cabinet as attorney-general. In 1862, Lincoln 
appointed him as his Secretary of War. Here he showed 
great abilities, proving of much service to the nation in 
the Civil War. He remained in Johnson's cabinet after 
Lincoln's death, but in 1867, Johnson suspended him. This 



49 

increased the friction between Congress and the president. 
Stanton was restored by the Senate but Johnson refused 
to agree, and this led to Johnson's impeachment. Stanton 
retired after the president was acquitted. 

Thaddeus Stevens (1793-1868) was born in Vermont. 
After being graduated from Dartmouth College in New 
Hampshire, he moved to Pennsylvania, where he studied 
law. He was repeatedly elected to the Legislature of Penn- 
sylvania. In 1835, his powerful speech in favor of the 
public schools overcame the opposition in the Legislature 
and established them on a sure basis. He removed to 
Lancaster and from there entered Congress, serving as a 
member for fourteen years. He was an opponent of slavery 
and a strong supporter of Lincoln during the Civil "War. 
He advocated negro suffrage after the war, and was the 
chief author of the bill for the reconstruction of the seceded 
States. This act divided the ten Southern States into five 
military districts, until these States adopted new consti- 
tutions ratifying the new amendments. He was one of 
Johnson's great foes, advocating his impeachment. He 
died in Washington. 

Bayard Taylor (1825-1878) was born in Chester County, 
Pennsylvania. He was the greatest writer the State has 
produced. Before he was twenty-one he went to Europe, 
undeterred by poverty. He sometimes lived on six cents 
a day, spent for bread, figs, and roasted chestnuts. He 
described his travels in ''Views Afoot," a book that made 
him famous. He later travelled in many countries, and 
wrote a number of volumes describing his journeys. He 
was a fine German scholar, and his greatest poem is an 



50 

English translation of Goethe's ''Faust/' He died in Ber- 
lin, after sem-ing nearly a year as American minister to 
Germany. 

General Anthony Wayne (1745-1796) was born in 
Chester County, Pennsylvania. He entered the patriot 
army as colonel, becoming a general in 1776. He fought 
at Brandywine, at Germantown, and at Monmouth. For 
his capture of Stony Point on the Hudson in 1779, Con- 
gress granted him a gold medal. Plis last victory was over 
the Ohio Indians in 1794. His daring courage made the 
people call him "Mad Anthony." 

Benjamin West (1738-1820) was born in Pennsylvania. 
As his parents were Quakers, they did not give him much 
encouragement in his desire to become an artist, but his 
genius conquered all difficulties. In 1759 he went to Itah^ 
to study, and thence to London. The Penn family in 
1773 had him paint the picture of William Penn's treaty 
with the Indians, paying him £420 for it. Another of his 
famous pictures is ''Christ Healing the Sick." He died 
in London where he had long been prominent as an artist. 



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